We have a
challenge. Just as we begin the season
of summer relaxation, the US Bishops
have called us again to cherish and
defend religious liberty through a
Fortnight for Freedom, June 21-July 4.

There are good
reasons for their summons (see “Fortnight
for Freedom Fact Sheets ”). Besides
the threats to that freedom we face at
home – such as those posed by same-sex
“marriage” and healthcare mandates – the
attack on religious freedom is even more
distressing abroad. In the Middle East
and in parts of Africa, churches are
being burned and Christians persecuted,
driven from their homes and often
slaughtered by the thousands at the
hands of radical Islam.

How to answer
this challenge in a distracted world
wooed by summer fun and sun?

We simply must
remember who we are, what is at stake,
and what it is that Jesus calls us to be
and to do. A helpful meditation is
provided in this excerpt from a
talk by Archbishop Charles Chaput of
Philadelphia:

Christianity is not mainly about
politics. It's about living and sharing
the love of God. A Christian life begins
in a relationship with Jesus Christ; and
it bears fruit in the justice, mercy and
love we show to others because of that
relationship.

That's the test of our faith. Without a
passion for Jesus Christ in our hearts
that reshapes our lives, Christianity is
just a word game and a legend. Relationships
have consequences. A married man
will commit himself to certain actions
and behaviors, no matter what the cost,
out of the love he bears for his wife.
Our relationship with God is the same.
We need to prove our love by our
actions, not just in our personal and
family lives, but also in the public
square. And that includes our social and
business relations, as well as our
politics.

Retaining the spirit of the Gospel means
more than distancing our institutions of
service and education from moral evil.
It means more than merely refraining
from giving the kind of bad example that
undermines people’s faith or encourages
them to engage in wrongdoing. Rather,
keeping the spirit of the Gospel means
that Catholic institutions are to bear
witness in love to the full truth about
the human person by providing social,
charitable, and educational services in
a manner that fully reflects the
God-given dignity of the human person.

During the debates at Vatican II on the
text of the Declaration on Religious
Liberty, the future John Paul II
famously said, “there is no freedom
without truth.” If we believe the
Church’s teachings on sexuality and
marriage are authentic manifestations of
true human dignity, then defending these
teachings will be linked to our defense
of religious freedom.

Finally, once
again from Archbishop Chaput:

The skills of the Christian citizen are
finally very simple: a zeal for Jesus
Christ and his Church; a conscience
formed in humility, love for the truth,
and rooted in Scripture and the
believing community; the prudence to see
which issues in public life are vital
and foundational to human dignity, and
which ones are not; and the courage to
work for what's right. We don't
cultivate these skills alone. We develop
them together as Christians, in prayer,
on our knees, in the presence of Jesus
Christ.

And so the
public witness we bear is first of all
rooted in prayer. We conclude with a
beautiful prayer provided by the US
Bishops for the Fortnight:

O God Our Creator

from Your provident hand we have
received

our right to life, liberty, and the
pursuit of happiness.

You have called us as Your people and
given us

the right and the duty to worship You,
the only true God,

and Your Son, Jesus Christ.

Through the power and workings of Your
Holy Spirit,

You call us to live out our faith in the
midst of the world,

bringing the light and the saving truth
of the Gospel

to every corner of society.

We ask You to bless us

in our vigilance for the gift of
religious liberty.

Give us the strength of mind and heart

to readily defend our freedoms when they
are threatened;

give us courage in making our voices
heard

on behalf of the rights of Your Church

and the freedom of conscience of all
people of faith.

Grant, we pray, O heavenly Father,

a clear and united voice to all Your
sons and daughters

gathered in Your Church

in this decisive hour in the history of
our nation,

so that, with every trial withstood

and every danger overcome -

for the sake of our children, our
grandchildren,

and all who come after us -

this great land will always be "one
nation under God,

indivisible, with liberty and justice
for all."

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Return to
this website frequently for updates on
the Fortnight for Freedom.

Jordan Lorence
discusses the Supreme Court ruling on public
prayer, Town of Greece vs. Galloway,
with Megyn Kelly of Fox News. The ruling
was a major religious freedom victory for
Lorence and the law firm for which he is
senior counsel – Alliance Defending Freedom.

The Little Sisters of the Poor are an
international Roman Catholic Congregation of
women Religious founded in 1839 by St.
Jeanne Jugan. They operate homes in 31
countries, where they provide loving care
for over 13,000 needy elderly persons. For
more information, visit
www.becketfund.org/littlesisters

Becket Fund and the Little Sisters of the
Poor on Your World w/ Neil Cavuto

Becket Fund's Mark Rienzi appears on Fox
News Channel's Your World with Neil Cavuto
on September 26, 2013 to discuss the threat
the HHS Mandate poses to the Little Sisters
of the Poor.

Hobby Lobby: A Family Business

On March 25, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court
will hear Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores
Inc., a case arising out of the commitment
of Hobby Lobby owners David and Barbara
Green and their family to live out their
deeply held religious convictions by
"operating their company in a manner
consistent with biblical principles."

The family believes that this commitment is
the reason that Hobby Lobby, which began out
of the garage, has grown from one
300-square-foot store to one of the nation's
leading arts and crafts retailers with more
than 550 stores in 45 states.